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Today's Headlines
MLB Mourns Another Great
Hall of Fame Orlando Cepeda died on Friday night at age 86. The first baseman/outfielder won National League Rookie of the Year in 1958 for the San Francisco Giants in the team's first season on the West Coast. He was named an NL All-Star each of the following six seasons and was the first Puerto Rican to start the midsummer classic. He finished second in the 1961 NL MVP race to Cincinnati's Frank Robinson. After a 1966 trade to St.Louis, Cepeda won a unanimous MVP and a World Series ring with the Cardinals in 1967. He finished his career with stints in Atlanta, Oakland, and Kansas City, retiring in 1974 with 379 home runs and a career slash line of .297/.350/.499. The Veterans Committee selected him for the Hall of Fame in 1999. The Giants retired 30 for Cepeda in 1999 and unveiled a statue of him in 2008.
[embed]https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1806896306419347629[/embed]
A game that started with a moment of silence for Cepeda ended with a walk-off homer from second baseman Brett Wisely that gave the Giants a 5-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
[embed]https://twitter.com/SFGiants/status/1806910880665510166[/embed]
Mets Lead the League in OMG
The opening game of this weekend's battle between the teams with the best records in June went to the New York Mets. Infielder Jose Iglesias' only hit of the evening happened after New York's 7-2 win over the Houston Astros when he performed his newly released song "OMG" for the Citi Field crowd. The song became a clubhouse anthem for the Mets during their hot stretch this month, preceding Grimace's first pitch as the good luck charm, cultural phenomenon, or good vibes the team needed to correct the course of their season. Right fielder Tyrone Taylor, first baseman Pete Alonso, and second baseman Jeff McNeil all homered off Houston starter Ronel Blanco.
[embed]https://twitter.com/JomboyMedia/status/1806878727856407012[/embed]
Yankees Score 16, Snap Skid
The New York Yankees put up their highest run total of the season and ended a four-game losing streak with a 16-5 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. In the sixth, Juan Soto turned on a Yusei Kikuchi four-seamer and flipped the game in the Yankees' favor with a three-run homer. From there, it was a blowout. New York scored six in the sixth, two in the eighth, and seven in the ninth.
[embed]https://twitter.com/Yankees/status/1806852290352922708[/embed]
Baltimore in First by .003
That four-game skid for the Yankees gave the Baltimore Orioles room to maneuver to the top of the AL East standings, and the O's held onto first place by percentage points with a 2-1 win over the Texas Rangers. Max Scherzer gave up two runs in 5.1 innings in his second start of the season, but Albert Suárez held the Rangers scoreless through six and the Baltimore bullpen struck out five Rangers in the final three innings.
[embed]https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1806843356380639555[/embed]
Padres Have Great Game in One Inning
Here's what the San Diego Padres did in the top of the fifth before they recorded an out yesterday: single, homer, ground-rule double, single, walk, single, infield single on overturned call, single, homer. The nine runs from that rally proved to be plenty in a 9-2 win over the Boston Red Sox.
[embed]https://twitter.com/Padres/status/1806849329807675446[/embed]
Best Moments From Yesterday
This One Goes to 11th
Passing Greg Maddux on an all-time pitching list would probably feel better in a win, but Max Scherzer put himself just outside the all-time top ten for career strikeouts yesterday. Scherzer and Pedro Martinez are the only two pitchers to climb into the top 20 with fewer than 3000 IP. His next adversary to surpass is former teammate Justin Verlander.
[embed]https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1806833162019815569[/embed]
30/30
Charlie Morton spent his first year in Atlanta, then seven seasons in Pittsburgh. Yesterday, Morton finally earned a win over the Pirates, completing his wins bingo blackout. Morton's only other game against his former club was a no-decision on June 11, 2022.
[embed]https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1806874046652375500[/embed]
Wall-Off
Ryan Helsley gets the save because Brendan Donovan saves the game.
[embed]https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1806885631613714645[/embed]
And the only reason the St.Louis Cardinals were leading 1-0 is because Michael Siani decided to run on Elly De La Cruz and his 90th percentile arm -- on a pop fly to shallow center!
[embed]https://twitter.com/Cardinals/status/1806857550626763070[/embed]
Salami Pairs Well with Beer
Jackson Chourio's first career grand slam gives the Milwaukee Brewers all the runs they need to beat the Chicago Cubs. (Please disregard a grand slam being called a "four-pointer" in the call.)
[embed]https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1806860962873422218[/embed]
Surprise Your Dad at Work Night
Okay, we'll go back to St. Louis for one more to wrap up. Kudos to these kids for keeping their first pitch duties a secret.
[embed]https://twitter.com/Cardinals/status/1806852469030617101[/embed]
Injuries and Other Moves
⚾ The Philadelphia Phillies are placing first baseman Bryce Harper (hamstring strain) and designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (groin strain) on the 10-day IL.
⚾ Top prospect James Wood will make his MLB debut for the Washington Nationals on Monday, July 1. The 6'7" outfielder, part of the Nats' return in the Juan Soto trade, is hitting .346/.458/.578 in Triple-A this season.
⚾ The St. Louis Cardinals called up right-handed pitcher Gordon Graceffo from Triple-A to join their bullpen.
⚾ The San Diego Padres transferred right-handed starter Joe Musgrove to the 60-day IL. They selected the contract of left-handed pitcher Austin Davis and placed left-handed pitcher Tom Cosgrove on the 10-day IL.
⚾ Outfielder Ramón Laureano missed Atlanta's game on Friday with a sore back.
Articles You Should Read
The Milwaukee Brewers Are a Powerful Operation Without Actual Power — Randy Holt, Pitcher List
Josh Smith Is Cutting Through the Heart and Breaking Out — Matt Martell, Fangraphs
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